Opening Doorz

By Martin D’Souza| Opening Doorz Editorial | December 06, 2025

The concerned journalist in me sees this as an ethical betrayal, not just of the media, but of the public. The professional paparazzi, while often criticised, historically served as an unfiltered mirror to celebrity life—capturing genuine joy, genuine distress, or genuine scandal. They upheld, even accidentally, a degree of journalistic realism.

Indian Paparazzi Degradation: Jaya Bachchan is not Wrong

The word “paparazzo,” derived from the relentless photographer in Federico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita, once suggested a certain gritty professionalism and dedication to the candid, uninvited capture of celebrity life. Yet, for veteran actor-politician Jaya Bachchan, the term today evokes only raw, unfiltered contempt. Her recent outburst—driven by the constant badgering and the invasion of in-your-face cameras—was perhaps inevitable, a pressure cooker moment waiting to explode. Her specific critique zeroed in on the decay of the profession:

“But these people outside who wear dirty drain-pipe tight pants with mobile phones in their hands, they think that because they have a mobile, they can take your picture. What kind of people are these people. Where do they come from?”

Her words are far more than just a celebrity rant; they are a damning indictment that goes to the heart of professional collapse. This public shaming gives immediate, viral credence to the core truth: the once-rare profession of the paparazzi has been completely co-opted, its definition lost, and its practitioners reduced to an unpolished, often-called, and entirely unrespected mob of mobile phone wielders.

Indian Paparazzi Degradation: Definition of a Paparazzi Photographer

In its original, true definition, a paparazzi photographer was a freelance professional who worked on spec, operating outside the formal structure of news agencies or editorial teams. Their value lay in the rarity of their capture, the unpredictability of the moment, and their primary goal: to sell an exclusive, candid photograph to a reputable, paying publication. The definition was rooted in uninvited presence and high-stakes documentation.

Today, in India, that definition is not merely blurred; it has been vaporised, replaced by a cheap, ubiquitous substitute that has reduced a once-rare, controversial, but necessary journalistic function into a staged, low-stakes punchline.

Indian Paparazzi Degradation: The Era of the ‘Mobile’ Paparazzo

The seismic shift is palpable on every street corner outside a Mumbai gym or airport terminal. The original paparazzi operated with heavy, high-powered telephoto lenses and an element of stealth. The current crop, however, is defined by the very tool that democratised and subsequently destroyed the profession: the ubiquitous mobile phone.

Anybody with a high-resolution camera phone and a fast internet connection is now a self-proclaimed “paparazzo”. They are not freelancers selling to Vogue or People; they are content creators working for the algorithm. They are not chasing the story; they are participating in the theatre.

They are not working for a reputable publication with an editor to hold them accountable; their ‘publication’ is their own Social Media handle, their ‘editor’ is the like-count. Their output, invariably tagged with the monotonous caption, “spotted,” lacks the three essential components of true paparazzi work: exclusivity, technical skill, and an authentic, un-choreographed moment.

This dilution has created a peculiar and, frankly, embarrassing media ecosystem. The line between professional documentation and fan-service has been erased entirely.

Indian Paparazzi Degradation: The Great Indian Celebrity Calling Card

The most damning evidence of this professional decay is the chilling realisation that the majority of these ‘candid’ encounters are, in fact, pre-arranged, pre-timed, and pre-meditated. The ‘mobile’ photographers are not staking out a location for days on end for the perfect shot; they are on a payroll, or, more commonly, they are being tipped off directly by the celebrity’s management team.

We see this played out daily: the star exiting the airport, adjusting their designer sunglasses, walking at an unnaturally slow pace, posing for the “paps” before they even get into the car. The idea of an uninvited, genuinely surprising photograph has become a myth.

The concerned journalist in me sees this as an ethical betrayal, not just of the media, but of the public. The professional paparazzi, while often criticised, historically served as an unfiltered mirror to celebrity life—capturing genuine joy, genuine distress, or genuine scandal. They upheld, even accidentally, a degree of journalistic realism.

The current system is an elaborate theatrical production. Celebrities, desperately trying to maintain visibility in the hyper-competitive attention economy, use these mobile photographers as a personal, free-of-cost publicity arm. They are effectively paying for their own coverage in the currency of access and tips. The moment a star is at the gym, or airport, or, as is often suspected, at a high-profile production house, the ‘mobile’ photographers are there, not because of investigative genius, but because of a calendar reminder.

This symbiotic relationship is the professional kiss of death. When the subject you are covering is also your primary source of income and information (when they are literally calling you to be photographed) the output ceases to be journalism and becomes pure, unvarnished PR-driven content.

The Loss of Skill and Integrity

The consequence is a noticeable decline in quality. The technical skill required to capture a fast-moving subject in low light using a 600mm lens has been replaced by the casual point-and-shoot of a phone camera. The photographs are often poorly lit, blurry, and repetitive.

More importantly, the decline is one of integrity. The true paparazzi market thrives on competition and exclusivity. The Indian content mill thrives on volume and immediate virality. When everyone is posting the same staged, often unflattering photograph of a star holding a coffee cup, the informational and artistic value drops to zero.

This erosion of the paparazzi’s original function has a broader, more sinister impact on the media landscape. It normalises the idea that all content is, and should be, a product of collaboration with the subject. It teaches the next generation of journalists that access is more valuable than authenticity, and that it is perfectly acceptable to be used as a free promotional tool.

India needs a vigilant, independent, and ethical media, and while paparazzi work exists on the fringes of that mandate, it is still a form of street-level documentation. When that documentation becomes a controlled, manipulated spectacle, it is symptomatic of a larger problem: the celebrity’s desire for control over their narrative has entirely subsumed the media’s duty to observe and report truthfully.

The flash has faded. The rare, candid moment is dead. What remains is a loud, unceasing chorus of “spotted”, echoing the hollow, staged nature of a profession that has become a self-serving, embarrassing joke. For those of us who believe in the power of a genuinely candid photograph to tell a true story, this new, managed chaos is a lamentable sight indeed.

FOOTNOTE: The mobile photographers responded publicly to Jaya Bachchan’s comments. They expressed offense and suggested they would collectively boycott any future promotions of the Bachchan family. They specifically mentioned her grandson Agastya Nanda’s debut film. 

This reaction unwittingly confirms the transactional nature of the current celebrity-media ecosystem. The “paparazzi” are not covering the family. Instead, they are providing promotional services. It is an open secret; today’s celebrity coverage can often be secured based on the money one is willing to spend. Therefore, this implied threat of “non-promotion” highlights that visibility is the primary currency, not newsworthiness.

Images: AI-Generated

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